Wednesday, January 16, 2019

NASHVILLE (BP) -- In light of "an accelerated rate of erosion" at "brick-and-mortar" stores, LifeWay Christian Resources President Thom Rainer has announced that some LifeWay stores will be closing. The number of stores to close and the timing of those closures has not been announced.

Rainer wrote in a Jan. 15 email to all LifeWay employees, "We prayed and hoped that our investments in and commitments to the LifeWay stores would prove fruitful. That just has not been the case. To the contrary, we not only continue to see an erosion in the brick-and-mortar channel, we have seen an accelerated rate of erosion in recent months. It was our hope that greater traffic would result in greater sales, and that with our expense reductions and product cost savings, we would be able to offset sales declines. That hope has not been realized with the declines we have seen since September. Read More

WASHINGTON (BP) -- Pro-life advocates in Congress have not given up on extracting the federal government from the abortion business.

Members of the Senate and House of Representatives already have introduced legislation in the new congressional session, which began Jan. 3, to end funding for abortions and abortion providers. Their efforts to gain passage, however, face what appear to be insurmountable odds in a House now controlled by Democrats, who support abortion rights nearly across the board.

Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., introduced Jan. 10 the No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion and Abortion Insurance Full Disclosure Act (S. 109), which would create a permanent, government-wide ban on funds for abortions by standardizing the prohibitions that now exist in various federal programs. The bill -- introduced by Wicker in partnership with Sens. James Lankford, R-Okla., and Pat Roberts, R-Kan. -- also would block federal money for abortion coverage under the 2010 health-care law and guarantee full disclosure of abortion funding by health insurance plans that are part of the controversial arrangement. Read More

WASHINGTON (BP) -- The number of Christians suffering high to extremely high persecution is 14 percent more in 2019, Open Doors reported, counting 245 million individuals globally.

Persecution driven by Islamic extremism and Communist authoritarianism in the world's two most populous countries, India and China, marked the increase, Open Doors said today (Jan. 16) in releasing its 2019 World Watch List of the 50 countries with the most extreme Christian persecution.

"Islamic radicalism continues to dominate and influence all spheres of life for Christians, and we are watching China and India very closely," Open Doors USA President and CEO David Curry said in releasing the latest findings. "The distressing impact of billions of people living in an environment in which the government oppresses freedom of religion is unraveling day by day as millions of Christians are being attacked, imprisoned or killed." Read More

CARY, N.C. (BP) -- Mark DeMoss, founder of DeMoss, an Atlanta-based public relations firm known for high-profile, faith-based clients, plans to close March 29, according to a letter DeMoss sent to friends dated Jan. 15.

DeMoss, recounting that he was diagnosed with cancer two years ago but tests now show he is cancer-free, wrote, "In addition to the gift of God's presence and physical healing during this journey, the experience motivated a season of reflection ultimately leading to both clarity and affirmation of this important decision for me."

Many public relations organizations have been "reinventing themselves" and changing their business models, DeMoss wrote, but he is "not wired" to do that with his firm. Read More

WASHINGTON (BP) -- Hana describes her most distressing experience as a persecuted Christian in Southwest Asia as perhaps her greatest joy.

She was in the hospital trying to console her closest friend, who lost her unborn baby and suffered severe injuries during a church bombing.

"Sitting in a dingy room with somebody who needed sunlight and fresh air, and trying to be that sunlight and fresh air for them, trying to console them, trying to be Jesus to them," Hana described the moment to Baptist Press Jan. 15. "Then perhaps I will change my statement and say that that wasn't the worst experience, but perhaps it's been the most rewarding and beautiful experience." Read More

Formed in 1946 by the Southern Baptist Convention, and supported with Cooperative Program funds, Baptist Press (BP) is a daily (Monday-Friday) international news service. Operating from a central bureau in Nashville, Tenn., BP works with a large network of contributing writers, photographers and editorial providers to produce BP News.